James Asare’s Three Minute Thesis
Do Gerrymandering Algorithms Perpetuate Segregation in U.S. School Districts for Minority Children?
Gerrymandering is the practice where politicians purposefully change election district boundaries to favor their party, or socioeconomic class while damaging the chances of their opponents seeking political representation. This old 19th century practice has plagued the U.S. for many years and has had adverse effects on elections, transparency in governance, policies, and many more. Because public school districts lie within the boundaries of a county or district, redrawing these boundaries affects the assignment of children to public schools.
The problem of assigning children to schools is an overly complicated one and advocates have suggested the use of computer algorithms for this because they claim they are nonpartisan. Surprisingly enough, there is no mathematical or experimental evidence that supports their claim. Policy makers, nonetheless, have been relying on the direct application of these computer algorithms to justify the school assignment areas for students. My research looks at the effect of the direct applications of gerrymandering algorithms on perpetuating segregation. My work aims to curb inequities in the assignment of minoritized children to public schools.
James comes from Ghana and is a student in the Math and Science Education program in Pullman. He has a background in pure, applied, and computational mathematics, which fuels his interest in the experiences of math education in the classroom. Being someone familiar with the “not a math-person” rhetoric, he is curious about leveraging his own plethora of experiences with math and technology to challenge the “not a math-person” and under-served communities to be open to the exciting opportunities understanding math can bring. He sees himself bridging the communication gap that exists between neophytes and experts in both the mathematics and science education community.